Madge, a sixteen-year-old magess, deals in Talents. From gourmet cooking to ballroom dancing, if you need it she has it. By mage law she's required to stay out of the "whys" and the "wheretofores" of a customer's purchase. But when a mysterious boy purchases the most lethal combination of Talents Madge has ever seen, she gets curious. Fast. Murder is on the boy's mind and Madge is the only one close enough to stop him.